Italy Jobless Rate Falls To 5.0% In May

ROME (dpa-AFX) - Italy's unemployment rate decreased marginally to a series record low in May, preliminary figures from the statistical office ISTAT showed on Thursday.The seasonally adjusted jobless rate stood at 5.0 percent, down from April's 5.1 percent. Meanwhile, economists had expected the ra…

ROME (dpa-AFX) - Italy's unemployment rate decreased marginally to a series record low in May, preliminary figures from the statistical office ISTAT showed on Thursday.

The seasonally adjusted jobless rate stood at 5.0 percent, down from April's 5.1 percent. Meanwhile, economists had expected the rate to remain stable at 5.1 percent.

In the corresponding month last year, the unemployment rate was 6.5 percent.

The number of unemployed people was decreased by 22,000 to 1.278 million in May compared to a month ago.

Data showed that the employment rate dropped to 63.0 percent from 63.1 percent, reflecting a decline of 22,000 employed people compared to the previous month.